Welcome to Equuis
by animefan192
Summary: A young man dies and awakens in Equestria. Follow his journeys with the Mane Six as he finds friends, love, and a new family. Anthro HIE story. Will not follow Canon/storyline closely.
1. Chapter 1

**Breaking News**

 **Late Friday evening there was a motor vehicle accident on Old Mill Road around mile marker 12 at 12:48 AM involving a motorcycle and a pickup truck. The driver of the truck was unhurt, but arrested at the scene for driving while intoxicated. The rider of the motorcycle is currently unnacounted for. The driver of the truck stated that after the colllision there was a flash of light and the rider disappeared, but when questioned as to what caused the flash, was unable to provide an answer. Police are currently engaged in a search of the area to find the rider.**

Splitting pain. My entire existence was made of white hot pain, forcing me from the warm embrace of unconsciousness. I barely cracked my eyes open, then smashed them shut with a groan, trying to shut out the blinding light that assaulted them. I slowly forced myself into a sitting position, gritting my teeth against my screaming muscles. I tried once again to open my eyes, hissing to myself with each assault of light. After several attempts I was finally able to get my eyes open to the point I could make out blurred shapes. I blinked my eyes to clear them until I could make out where the hell I was.

It looked like I was In the middle of a clearing in some forest. I've been all over the forests around my home and knew every inch of them, and right now I didn't have any idea where the hell I was. I forced myself to my feet and staggered over to a gnarled looking tree to lean against while I collected myself. I quickly looked myself over, noting the ragged appearance of my clothes.

I still had my leather jacket on, but there was a huge rip down the left arm. My jeans were no better, with huge rips on the legs. My t-shirt was covered with rips, and I could see patches of raw skin through them that looked like road rash, almost like I had laid my motorcycle down and slid. There was also splashes of blood on my clothes, making me wonder what the fuck had happened the night before. My steel toed biker boots still seemed intact, just scuffed up.

I took a deep breath and hissed, as it felt like every rib in my side was broken. I closed my eyes against the nauseous spinning that swam in my head. After it had abated some, I gingerly lifted my shirt and jacket and stared shocked at the bruising that covered my left side. I laid my hand gently on my ribs and probed. It hurt like a bitch, but I didn't feel anything moving, so I at least could rule out broken ribs, leaving me to guess cracked as the culprit. I let the material fall and leaned against the tree, letting my thoughts swirl in my head.

 _OK. I'm in severe pain, it feels like I'm being stabbed every time I breathe, I have no clue where I am, and my motorcycle is nowhere to be seen. Fuckin perfect. I must have been mugged and left somewhere. Ok, focus. I'm still breathing, even though I'd rather not, yes I'm banged up, but nothing seems truly broken. I can still walk, it's daytime, which means I don't have to worry about being attacked by wild animals. Just breathe, shallowly, and focus on finding help._

I took another, much shallower breath, then pushed off the tree and took a tentative step forward, testing my balance. I wobbled a little bit, then took another step, then another, getting my footing back. I looked towards the spot where I had started and saw my rucksack laying there. I walked over to it, hissing through my teeth as I felt muscles twinge and ache. I quickly leaned down to grab the bag, gritting my teeth against my ribs and spine sending bolts of pain to my brain.

I straightened up and looked at the sky to see where the sun was to try to get a fix on what direction was what. I reached into my rucksack and pulled out my phone and checked for a signal. Finding none, I noted the time, finding it to be mid-morning. _Well no time like the present._ I noted where the sun was again, then struck out in a roughly westerly direction, hoping I would come out somewhere near civilization. With each step I could feel my muscles protesting, but I pushed through the pain. I could stop and rest when I was dead, or had found someone to get me to the nearest hospital.

To take my mind off of the pain, I plugged my headphones into my phone and hit play on the first playlist on my phone. As the opening notes to Ten Thousand Fists by Disturbed started to blast in my ears, I pushed on through the underbrush, letting the lyrics flood my mind, pushing everything else to the back of my mind. Yes I was still in pain, but I could at least focus my mind on something else. I closed my eyes, inhaled, exhaled, then started walking again, hoping I would find help before nightfall.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I leaned against a tree, trying to catch my breath, and trying to ignore the stabbing pain in my side every time I inhaled. My injuries must have been worse than I thought. If I didn't get medical attention, and soon, I'd probably end up just collapsing. I glanced at my phone, finding I had been walking for about four hours by this point, and I still had no service. I had noticed that my battery was approaching the twenty percent marker about an hour prior, so I turned it off to try to conserve the battery in case I found somewhere with service.

I felt my stomach grumble, and I was dying of thirst by this point. Food I could do without, but hydration was a necessity. I dug through my ruck, looking for something, anything, to drink. Towards the bottom I found a half empty bottle of warm water, and luck must love me, a small medicine bottle. I pulled both out and quickly opened the meds, finding four ibuprofen at the bottom of the bottle. I dumped the pills into my mouth and necked the water, feeling the water sate my thirst for the moment. I put the empty bottles back into my rucksack and did a quick inventory.

Phone charger, an orange, change of clothes, art supplies, some notebooks. Standard fare for my bag. Under everything I had some airsoft supplies as well. Handgun, MP7 mockup, some ammo and gas clips for the guns, and a propane canister to refill the clips. I also had a Beretta 96F in a holster that I carried for my job and a full box of .45 ammo. I found a granola bar in the bottom of the bag which quickly ceased its existence. I tossed the wrapper into my bag and resumed my journey, hoping that the thinning trees up ahead meant that I was about to leave this infernal Forest behind. I had started to hear less than friendly noises in the last hour, and I had no desire to meet the things making them. I was in luck however. The trees had given way to a small path that twisted away in a northerly direction, and out of the trees. I made a beeline for the path, wanting to spend as little time as possible in this place.

I followed the path towards what looked like a lake in the distance where I could just barely make out sounds like some people having fun. I broke into a jog, praying one of them had service. As I broke the tree line, the laughter turned to screams of terror. I broke into a run, feeling my ribs scream in protest, and headed for the lakes edge, well more like a very large pond as it was at most sixty to sixty five feet across. I could see two young girls panicking on the other shore. When they saw me they started screaming louder and gesturing.

"It's our friend! She was fine then she went under and she hasn't come back up! Please help her!" the one screamed to me. I dropped my rucksack and threw my jacket behind me as I ran to the shore and dove as far out as I could. I sucked in a breath at how cold the water felt on my skin, and nearly ended up drowning myself. I quickly surfaced and coughed out a mouthful of water and made my way towards the center of the pond, took a deep breath, and dove. Even though this was only a pond the bottom was a good forty plus feet down. I had moderate visibility, so I quickly started searching the depths looking for any…There! I could just make out a body floating below me close to the bottom. I dove down and seized an arm, then made for the surface dragging the limp body behind me. I broke the surface and sucked air into my burning lungs, coughing as I felt my ribs burn. I pulled the body up to reveal a young girl with purple hair in her face.

I quickly started swimming for the edge of the pond the two young girls were at, noticing a tanned woman with a Stetson running towards them from up a hill. The closer to shore I got the more I became aware of my muscles protesting and how fatigued I was from my injuries. I pushed through and drug myself and the girl onto shore as the three rushed towards me. I had taken an emergency response training a few months ago, so I quickly started to assess the girl's condition. She wasn't breathing and I couldn't find a pulse anywhere.

"Is she alright? Why isn't she moving? Why is she so pale? Can you help her? Can we help?" I had the young girls yelling questions at me while the woman was standing back on a cell talking to someone.

"EVERYONE SHUT THE HELL UP!" I shouted at them, as I quickly started to administer chest compressions, trying to get her heart started. I felt something slam into me, knocking me onto the ground.

"Wha the buck do ya think yer doin to Scootaloo?" the woman was standing over me yelling. I quickly jumped up and pushed her back. "I'm trying to save her life you dumbass! Haven't you ever seen CPR?" I yelled at her as I dropped next to, what did the bitch say, Scootaloo? And resumed my chest compressions.

"What the hay is sea pea are?" the woman asked me. "It's a medical process. Her heart stopped beating and I'm trying to get it going again." I responded as I delivered another three compressions, then quickly tilted the girls head back and pinched her nose closed. "She's not breathing so I'm going to blow air into her lungs to replenish her oxygen levels." I told the woman before sealing my mouth over the girls and blowing. I only had to do that twice before I felt her convulse.

I quickly rolled her onto her side in time for her to cough and vomit water onto the sand. Her two friends helped her into a sitting position as two more women ran up to us. I stood up as the group reached us and surrounded the three girls. The woman from before walked over to me. "Eh, sorry bout before mister. I saw ya doin that an thought ya were doin something to Scootaloo."

"It's fine. Seeing someone performing CPR and not know what the hell they're doing would confuse anybody Miss…? I said to her, brushing my hair out of my face. I had been growing it out for the past year, and now my bangs would fall in my face if it wasn't tied back.

"Oh where are mah manners. Names Applejack pardner, but mah friends' call me AJ. I run Sweet Apple Acres just over the hill there with mah family." She said as she extended her hand to me. I took it and she nearly broke my fingers with her grip. _Well, when in Rome,_ I thought to myself as I squeezed back, doing my best to break her hand too.

Applejack threw her head back and laughed. "Yer the first stallion I've found who's actually tried to match my shake. Kinda nice to find somepony who don't mind bein a lil forceful. Never did catch yer name mister…?"

 _Stallion? Somepony? Must have hit my head too._ "Uh, my names Nicolai. Nicolai Romanov. I'm sorry, my heads a little bit fuzzy. I coulda sworn you just called me a stallion and used the word somepony." I chuckled. AJ cocked her head to the side and looked at me.

"I did." She said, looking at me like she was confused. "Eh Nicolai, what happened to ya? Ya look like ya got chewed on by a whole pack of Timberwolves."

"I'm not exactly sure to be honest. I think I got mugged last night and dumped in the forest." I responded, pointing over my shoulder towards the forest I had come out of.

Her eyes widened and she looked at me again. "You came out of there?! The Everfree?"

I quirked an eyebrow at her and nodded. "Yeah, I guess. Hey, I left my stuff on the other side when I jumped in. Mind if we go get it?"

She looked at me oddly again, then nodded. I started around the pond, quickly finding my stuff. As I went to bend over a gust of wind caught AJ's hat, knocking it off her head to reveal a pair of pony ears on top of her head. She turned and quickly picked the hat back up and stuck it back on her head. When she had turned I had caught sight of a tail protruding from her jeans.

"Heh, trying on your Halloween costume early?" I asked as I picked up my rucksack and coat, then started to walk back around the pond towards the other group. She looked at me again, then followed me.

"What the hay is Halloween? An what do ya mean costume?"

 _Ok, this chicks messing with me now._ "The ears and tail AJ. They're part of a costume for Halloween. You know, kids going door to door getting candy?"

AJ gave me yet another strange look. "Ya mean Nightmare Night? An what makes ya think my ears an tail are fake?"

I stopped and faced her. "Ok Applejack. Enough with the joke. You're wearing a fake tail and ears. We both know it. It's cool if you wanna wear that stuff, but at least admit that they're fake."

She was suddenly in my face. "Listen here. I don't know where the hay ya think ya get off sayin mah ears or mah tail are fake. Who the Buck do you think you are?" She yelled in my face.

I scoffed and turned to walk away. We were only about forty feet from the other group by this point. As I took a step I was hit with a wave of dizziness and stumbled. I managed to catch my balance and stay upright, but the dizziness wasn't going away. By that time Applejack had gotten in front of me.

"Don't you walk away from me when I'm… Nicolai! Yer bleeding!" she said, pointing at my chest.

I looked at where she was pointing and saw a dark stain starting to spread across my shirt. I grunted in surprise, then collapsed. I tried to sit back up, but nothing was responding to my orders. I was just too weak. "Well fuck. I must have been injured worse than I thought."

"Fluttershy! Come quick!" Applejack yelled towards the group. One of the women rushed over to me and pulled at my shirt to get at the wound. She finally just ripped it, tearing the shirt off. She gasped, then grabbed the bag she had dropped nearby and started pulling bandages out of it.

"Ww. happened to him?" She asked as she folded and pressed a bandage against my chest. I had managed to gather enough strength to raise my head so I could see the wound. The wound wasn't all that big, only like four or five inches long, but it looked deep. I was starting to feel dizzy from the adrenaline leaving my system and blood loss, so I started to act just a hair loopy.

"Well how bad is it cutie? Will I make it?" I said, well more I mumbled, to her. She blushed, but never let up with the pressure on my wound. She did look cute with her pink hair framing her face the way it did, her teal eyes looking so determined, her bangs in her face, even the pony ears she was wearing looked cute on her.

I reached up and brushed her pink bangs out of her face. She eeped and flinched away from my hand. "Sorry. Just wanted to see the face of the angel who's trying to save me." I said to her before my eyes rolled into the back of my head and I sank into darkness.

-.-Fluttershy's POV-.-

I watched the stranger pass out, his hand falling to the sand next to him. _There's so much blood. I don't know if I can stop it fast enough._ I reached over to rummage in my bag, searching for one small packet. Finally my hand closed over it, and I quickly ripped it open, revealing a needle, some sutures, and a small hand sanitizer packet.

"Applejack, I need you to keep pressure on this." I said. She quickly took my place and pressed down, doing her best to staunch the blood flow. I opened the hand sanitizer and sterilized my hands and the needle. I quickly threaded the suture on the needle, then moved over to the stranger's side.

"Ok, I need you to lift the bandage so I can stitch his wound closed." I ordered. AJ quickly moved the bandage and I set to stitching. It only took me thirty seconds to get the wound closed enough to stop him from bleeding out before we got him to the hospital. "Applejack, what happened? How did this stallion get like this?"

AJ ran her hand through her mane, streaking some blood through it. "Ahm not sure. All I got out of him was his name is Nicolai and he reckoned he was mugged and dumped in the Everfree. But something ain't right. He thought mah ears an tail were fake. An that's not the only thing. Ah mean look at him. I was too stressed out earlier to notice, but look. He doesn't have a tail or hooves, or even ears like ours. Jest what is he?"

"I'm not sure AJ, but whatever he is, he need a hospital." I said to her. I quickly turned and looked for my other friend Rarity. "Rarity, can you levitate him please? T..that is if you don't mind?" Rarity quickly nodded, then picked up Nicolai with her magic. Applebloom and Sweetiebell had helped Scootaloo to her feet, but she was still weak, and they were supporting her. We all quickly made our way towards Ponyville and the hospital to get Scootaloo checked over and this strange being stabilized.


	2. Chapter 2

I came to groggily, squeezing my eyes shut against the sunlight in my face. I could hear someone moving around the bed I was on, and I could also hear the beeping of a heart monitor off to the side, so I knew I was in a hospital. I shifted and groaned, alerting the other person that I was awake.

"Good morning sleepy head. How are you feeling?" A bubbly female voice greeted me.

"Bit stiff if I'm honest. I don't know what drugs you gave me, but they gave one hell of a dream. That or the blood loss." I responded. I was trying to open my eyes, but the light was still too bright for me. "Hey could you pull the blinds? I'm being blinded here." I joked with her. Her bubbly laughter sounded from beside the window, and I could see the light getting dimmer through my eyelids.

"Is that better Hun? Now, how about you tell me what you remember before passing out, then about that dream?" She asked me. I had managed to open my eyes, but everything was still blurry. I blinked a few times, and that cleared my vision some, but I was still having some difficulty.

"Well I met these girls and…Oh Shit! The girls! One almost drowned and I pulled her to shore. Is she okay?" I asked, trying to sit up in the bed. The nurse rushed over to me and helped me upright. She also handed me a glass of water, which I took gratefully.

"She's ok Hun. Don't get yourself all worked up. We kept her overnight to observe her, but she's fine." She told me. I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. "I'm glad to hear that. I know that she was breathing alright, but I've heard of cases where the victim had complications later." I said before taking a sip of the water. Considering it was hospital water, the freshness of it surprised me.

"Feeling better?" I nodded in response. "That's good. Now how about that dream?" I rubbed the back of neck and grinned. "Well you're gonna call me crazy, but I dreamt that this woman I met had ears and a tail. Crazy huh?" I chuckled to myself. I had still been blinking and my vision had cleared by this point, so I turned to get a look at my nurse. She looked pretty good, about five-five, wearing a nurse's outfit, luscious red hair…and there's the ears. "Huh. Guess I'm still asleep."

The nurse walked over to me and took my hand in hers and placed it on one of her ears." Take a feel Hun, one hundred percent real deal." I of course felt them. Actually they felt really velvety to the touch. I also gave a soft tug, and dammit if they weren't real.

"Ok. So here's my two choices. I'm either in a coma hallucinating, or I'm not in Kansas anymore." I cracked. She merely cocked her head.

"Kansas?" She asked me. I had to smile at how cute she looked with her head tilted like that. I quickly covered it by taking another drink.

"It's a joke where I'm from. I'm sorry, it's just I'm not used to people having ears like that, or even having tails. This a bit disconcerting for me." I said as I stretched. "I'm sorry, where are my manners. I'm Nicolai. May I know the name of my lovely caregiver?" I asked her with a wink, watching her cheeks color slightly.

" my name's Redheart. Nurse Redheart." She said. "Alright Nurse Redheart. So can I leave today or am I being held hostage?" I said to her. She quickly looked over the chart at the end of my bed, then at me. "Well it says here that the bleeding has stopped, and all of your wounds have been addressed. So yes, you're cleared for discharge." She told me. A knock at the door drew her away. She opened the door and spoke with someone, then looked to me.

"Um, you have visitors, if you're ready that is?" She said. I nodded and waved at the door, which she stuck her head out of and said something to someone. "Whenever you're done, just stop at the receptionist's desk and we'll get you checked out." She said before leaving.

A minute later Applejack walked in, carrying a large canvas bag. She was followed by my pink haired nurse from the beach, another woman, and the three young girls from the other day. The one I had saved rushed over to me and hugged me, making me grunt in pain. She quickly released me and stepped back.

"S. mister, I'm just happy to see you're ok." She stammered. I reached out and tousled her short purple hair between her ears.

"It's fine. I'm happy to see you're ok too. Your names Scootaloo right?" I said to her. She blushed and nodded. "Well my names Nicolai." I told her. She grinned, and moved over to the side of my bed and leaned against it, exposing a purple tail. Well I guess I'm getting used to that. What I wasn't prepared for was the pair of wings on her back. How the hell did I miss those? Any ways now that I had a chance to properly look at her, I could see she had a decent tan going. She also had these two toned eyes. Like they started out light purple at the edge of her iris and darkened as you moved towards the pupil.

I looked over at her friends, who had the same appendages as her, the ears and the tail I mean, and noticed the one on the left also had a short three or four inch horn just at her hairline. Her hair was two toned, it looked like she dyed one half of her hair light purple and the other half pink. It actually didn't look all that bad when paired with her pale skin tone. She was looking at me with a pair of sea-green eyes that looked awesome. I had the same color of eyes, and had never met someone else who had them.

The other friend had a head of fiery red hair with a large pink bow in it, and beautiful golden honey colored eyes. Her skin was a tad yellowish, which I thought odd, but ignored for the moment. She was looking at me, or more precisely, the top of my head.

Speaking of horns, one of the women standing with AJ had one too. She had tri-toned hair, looked like a purple base color, with twin streaks of violet and pink. Her amethyst eyes were roving over me while she made notes on a pad. What was weird for me was her skin had a purple tint to it. Yellow, bronzed, even red colored skin I could understand, but purple? I'd have to ask her later.

"See something you like, miss?" I asked her. She started when she realized I had caught her. I laughed as she stammered and dropped her pen. I turned back to Scootaloo. "So who are your friends?"

She perked up at that. "Oh um these are my friends Applebloom," the red head nodded at me, "and Sweetie Belle." The one with the horn waved shyly. I nodded back. "And we're THE CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS!" All three yelled. I clapped my hands to my ears to try to muffle the yell. All three looked at me and gave guilty grins. "Eh sorry about that mister."

I merely waved them off and, once my ears had stopped ringing, turned to talk to Applejack. "So I guess I owe you an apology for the last time we talked." I said to her. She quirked her eyebrow at me. "I mean about what I said about your ears. And your tail. I just haven't seen anyone who had them."

The purple one chose that moment to interrupt. "About that. Just what type of beast are you?" She asked me while staring at me while jotting down some notes. Well that was rude. I believe that requires an answer in kind.

"Umm. I'm a Human. What kind of beast are you?" I asked her. She looked at me with a frown, then jotted down another note.

Applejack looked at her, then me. "Err, actually Nicolai, we're Ponies." I looked at her for a second, then busted out laughing. It wasn't that I was laughing at her, it was just the whole situation. When I started having my small breakdown, the pink haired woman, who had been silent up to this point, eeped and dove behind Applejack. I calmed down after a few minutes, then looked at Applejack again.

"Ok. So you're Ponies. Do you have hooves too?" I asked her. Scootaloo had hopped on my bed at some point and was sitting next to me at that point, so she lifted her leg parallel to the bed showing me that yes, they had hooves instead of feet. I reached out and touched one, finding it to be smooth and hard, like a fingernail. Considering that both fingernails and hooves are made of keratin that would explain that little coincidence. _And check three on the insanity meter_.

I merely shook my head, then tried to look at the pink haired woman that was shaking behind Applejack. AJ moved out of the way, so now I was able to see her better. She had hidden her face behind her hair, which was really easy considering how long it was. Long locks of cotton candy pink hair reached down to her waist. Now I don't mean to come off as shallow, but her body looked amazing _._ Any beauty queen seeing her would throw up their hands and quit pageants for the rest of their lives. Thin waist, slim arms and legs, even her hooves looked dainty.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts, then addressed her. "And what's your name miss?" She looked at me through her hair, then pushed her bangs out of the way, revealing a pair of gorgeous sea-green eyes. "Oh um .my name's Fluttershy." She shyly said, well more she whispered. I nodded my head. _Well her name fits her at least._

"And what about you oh queen of grump. You have a name?" I asked the purple haired one. She snorted at me and stood straight. "My name is Twilight Sparkle. I was handpicked by Princess Celestia herself as her personal student, and I'm the holder of the Element of Magic." She had closed her eyes as she was saying this, so I sock puppeted her little speech. The three girls were struggling not to laugh aloud, AJ was smirking, and even Fluttershy had a small smile on her face.

Twilight had opened her eyes, so I hastily made it look like I was coughing into my hand. She glared at me, then jotted another note down. I looked at Scootaloo and her friends quickly. "So how old are you three?"

Scootaloo answered me first. "Well I'm twelve, and Applebloom and Sweetie Belle are thirteen." She said to me.

"Well that explains why you look like shrimp to me." I chuckled. I'm not kidding either. All of them were just short of four foot tall it looked like. Considering I'm five-eleven, that's a fair bit smaller. Applebloom had puffed up when I said that, so I tousled her hair. "I'm kidding Applebloom. Don't worry about it. You'll get taller when you get older." She seemed to calm down at that. I looked at Sweetie Belle next. "So what's the story on the horn?"

She looked at me in shock. "You don't have Unicorns where you're from?" I looked at her, surprised. _Captain, we have reached Level Eight on the Crazy Meter. Repeat, Level Eight on the Crazy Meter._ I shook my head to clear the thought from my head. "Uh. No actually. Where I'm from Unicorns are myths. And they're supposed to walk on four legs. And don't talk." I said. I could see Twilight jotting down more notes.

"You know, if you have questions, you could just ask." I said to her. She jerked her head up and glared at me.

"Well let's start with how rude you are." She said to me. I snorted in disbelief. _Pot calling the Kettle black?_ "You ask me what kind of beast I am and I'm the rude one?" I asked her. Her face colored slightly, and I saw her ears flick backwards. _Must mean she's embarrassed,_ I thought to myself.

Twilight blew out a breath. "Your right. I'm sorry for being rude like that. I'm just trying to figure out what to tell the Princess about you. You look so similar to us, but you're also completely different. Like what are those things at the end of your legs instead of hooves?"

I twitched an eyebrow at her. "You mean my feet? And tell who what now?" _Why would a princess want to know about me?_ I wondered as I shifted so I could get out of bed to stand up and stretch. As I still had Scootaloo pretty much sitting on me, I just scooped her up as I stood. She squeaked in surprise, and wiggled closer to my chest. "What? Do you think I'd drop something as light as you?" And I was serious about her being light too. Despite her size, she only weighed as much as a medium sack of dog food. "Actually I'm being serious here. Where I'm from, a child your size would weigh around sixty to seventy pounds. You feel like you only weigh forty." I said as I set her back down on the bed.

Twilight made another note, then answered. "Well, actually the answer is very simple. Scootaloo is a Pegasus, so she has a lighter build, like a bird's, than other ponies. When she's older, she'll probably weigh about the same as Fluttershy." She explained. I looked at Fluttershy, who nodded, then extended her wings so I could see them. I could only stare in awe. She had a nine foot wingspan, with long, beautiful yellow feathers. I walked over to her and reached out a hand. "May I?" She blushed, but nodded. I ran a finger down a long primary, feeling the feathery texture against my fingertip. Did I mention long? I'm betting that if I laid one on my arm, it would reach from my fingertips to my elbow easily.

"So you really are an angel then." I said to Fluttershy. She blushed crimson as I moved my hand up and ran it lightly along the top of her wing. That was when I realized that the coloration that I saw wasn't her skin, it was fur. I ran my hand along the length of her wing, feeling the short fur, well more like fuzz it was so short, tickle my palm. I heard a soft noise, like a stifled moan, making me look at her face, which was currently crimson.

The fact that I could look her in the face without having to really look down made me realize that there was a major size difference between me and these girls. AJ and Twilight looked to be between five four and five six, but I was just shy of six foot tall, so that would put Fluttershy around five eight. I moved my hand away from her wing, seeing a flash of relief flash in her eyes.

I leaned forwards so my mouth was near her ear. "Wings are sensitive then?" She blushed again, but nodded, before ducking her face behind her hair again. I brushed a bang out of her face, so I could see one eye. "I'm sorry Fluttershy. I didn't mean to embarrass you. Your wings are beautiful, and I got carried away." She gave me a small smile, and brushed the other bang out of her face.

I heard the door swing open and turned to see who had walked in. The woman who entered looked like Sweetie Belle, only older. Her hair was a rich purple, which contrasted nicely with her marshmallow coloration, and was styled in a large curl on one side of her face. She had a horn as well that sat along her hairline. Her horn, unlike Sweetie Belle's, was longer and more slender, reaching around six inches long. She scanned the room before landing on me, letting her cerulean blue eyes do a quick survey of me.

"Do I pass inspection?" I asked her jokingly. To my astonishment, she shook her head.

"Oh heavens no Darling. The rags you were wearing when we brought you here were absolutely atrocious. You simply must let me make a new wardrobe immediately. I have absolutely no idea who would allow you to dress like that, especially in such unflattering clothes. And something must be done about your hair. It's simply not doing anything for your appearance." She stated. I stared at this woman, shocked she would be that rude.

"Well I'm sorry that MY fashion sense doesn't match yours, but I like the way I look and dress. Just who are you to tell me, rudely may I add, how I should dress?" I said, letting some ice into my voice. She colored slightly, sputtering in shock.

"Don't mind her mister Nicolai, she gets carried away. Rarity's my older sister, and the towns clothing designer." Sweetie Belle chimed in from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder at her, noticing she looked embarrassed. I think the way her sister chose to talk to me caused her some discomfort. I walked over and kneeled next to her, looking her in the face. "Don't be embarrassed for others Sweetie Belle. Your sister's actions don't have any bearing on my opinion of you. And my friends call me Nicolai Sweetie Belle. None of that Mister garbage. I'm not that old." She gave me a small grin and nodded.

I stood and turned to Applejack, still hearing Rarity sputtering from the door. "AJ, where is my stuff anyway?" She scratched her neck before looking at me. "About that. Yer clothes were so torn up we threw them out." Well that was to be expected. "Here's yer haversack though. And yer coat an the things you had on yer, uh, feet." She said as she pulled them out of the canvas bag and handed them to me.

I took them gratefully, then dug through the bag looking for the change of clothes I had seen the other day before all the madness. Alas, they turned out to be sleep clothes, for when I spent a night at a friend's house, and a pair of socks. I also had a belt stuck in there, from some semi casual dinner I had gone to the week before.

"Alright so my clothes were trashed, and all I have are sleep pants and a change of boxers. Does anyone have any spares I can borrow?" I jokingly asked while placing my things on the bed. AJ pulled a muscle shirt and a pair of jeans out of her bag and handed those to me as well. "Ah didn't know if you had any spare clothes, so ah "borrowed" these from mah brother. Yer about the same size as im."

I nodded my thanks, then ducked into the bathroom to change. When I came out I had the muscle shirt on, but was stuck holding the jeans up. While it appeared I was the same height as AJ's brother, he seemed to be a hair thicker around the waist. I stepped over to the bed and fished out the belt, quickly cinching it up to hold up the jeans.

I sat down on the bed and pulled my boots on and laced them up, tying them tightly. I pulled my coat on, noting with displeasure the rip on the sleeve. "I wish I had a way to fix this." I said with great displeasure. I caught a gleam of light in the corner of my eye, making me look towards the source. Rarity was standing there, with her horn lit up. I felt a tugging sensation on my sleeve, and, looking down, I saw the sleeve was surrounded by the same glow and was fusing back together, until it looked just like new.

I looked up at Rarity, slack jawed, then said, "Of course you have magic. I mean, why not?" I flopped back on the bed and covered my eyes with my arm. "Any other surprises I should be aware of?"

"Have yer eyes always been polka-dotted Nicolai?" AJ asked me. I flipped off the bed and ran into the bathroom to look in the mirror, seeing sea stone green eyes looking back at me. "Oh ha ha ha. Kiss my ass AJ." I shouted from the bathroom. I could hear her laughing from the other room, as well as being able to see the three girls sniggering too. I stepped out and winged my discarded hospital gown at AJ's head, catching her in the face. Applebloom guffawed at that, nearly collapsing to the floor from laughing so hard. AJ pulled the gown from her face and scowled at me, tossing the gown on the bed.

"Thank you for fixing my jacket Rarity. It has sentimental value, if it was permanently damaged it would have killed me." I said as I walked over to the bed.

"Of course. I'm sorry for my earlier offense, I didn't mean to offend you." She said to me. I looked over at her and sighed. "I have to be honest, you came across as very offensive. I know you didn't mean it, but that's how it felt to me." I said to her. She ducked her head, but nodded in agreement. I walked over to her and stuck my hand out. "Let's start over. Hi, I'm Nicolai."

She smiled at me and took my hand. "And I'm Rarity, fashionista extraordinaire." We shook hands, then I slung my rucksack over my shoulder and started for the door. "Shall we ladies?"


	3. Chapter 3

***As this is a new chapter, once again I do not own any of the characters found within nor do I claim ownership of My Little Pony. Hasbro has that honor I do believe. I also do not claim ownership of any songs found within. They are the sole property of their writers/composers. Onwards to the next chapter!***

I walked to the front desk with my little entourage and flagged down Nurse Redheart. After filling out some forms, I was officially discharged, with a warning to take it easy for the next few days, and free to leave. As we headed out the front door Fluttershy said she had to get home and took off towards the edge of town. Meanwhile Twilight led us towards her home. As we walked I felt something bump my side. I looked down to see Scootaloo with something in her hand.

"Um, these fell out of your bag back there." She said while showing me what she was holding. Apparently I had a pack of cigarettes in my bag, and I had overlooked them while going through it. I took the pack, noting that it was still unopened. The best part for me was they were menthols, my favorite type. The store I bought mine at didn't carry a lot of those, so I mostly bought the traditional kind.

"Oh yeah! Nicotine how I have missed you." I said while quickly tapping the pack against my palm, packing the tobacco in the cigarettes. I opened the pack, then remembered I was with other people. "Uh, you don't mind if I smoke do you?"

Twilight wrinkled her nose in my direction. "You do that?" AJ and Rarity looked confused at Twilights statement. "It's a new fad in Canterlot among the upper class. You dry certain plants then roll them in a paper tube and light it to inhale the smoke." She told them.

"Wait, this is a new fad here? How long ago did it start?" I asked her. She looked over at me and scratched her head, while her eyes rolled towards her brow. "I think it started about six or seven months ago. Some rich stallion came back from a trip he took to some remote country and brought the practice back." She said. I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

"Huh. My species has smoked for at least the last three hundred years." I told her. Her ever present notepad was raised for her to make a note. Rarity was looking between me and Twilight. "So if I understand you correctly Twilight, the upper class of Canterlot do this "smoking"? Nicolai darling, could I see one of those please?" She asked me sweetly.

I had one already held in my lips, so I shrugged, lit it, and then handed it to her. She took the cigarette, then took a small draw. She immediately started to cough, dropping the cigarette to the ground. I quickly picked it up and stuck the filter back between my lips, taking a slow draw on it, before releasing a plume of smoke through my nose.

"Ughh! How can you stand that?" She asked me, still coughing. I shrugged at her. "I've done it long enough that I'm used to the burn." I told her. Scootaloo, Applebloom, and Sweetie Belle were all staring at me in awe.

"That's soo cool Nicolai! You looked like a dragon when you did that. Can I try?" Scootaloo said to me. I immediately put the pack in my pocket. "No you can't. Children shouldn't smoke. Adults really shouldn't either, but we're old enough to understand what we're doing to ourselves."

"What do you mean by that Nicolai?" Twilight asked me. I told her, between hits as I was needing the nicotine to calm down the jitters I was feeling from withdrawal, about the various health risks and concerns that smoking caused, including other effects it could have on the body, especially for pregnant females. I also stressed that there were chemicals in my cigarettes, whereas it sounded like they were only using dried plant leaves, so they were different from what the upper class were smoking. By the time I was done, the three girls no longer looked awed, Twilight had filled three pages with notes, AJ looked concerned, and Rarity looked a little green, although I think that was from her first hit.

"If ya know how bad these things are for ya, why do ya still smoke em?" Applejack asked me. I took another long draw, held it, and then exhaled, blowing a plume up into the sky.

"Sometimes, the reason behind the action explains it all." I said as I took another hit. After exhaling, I rolled the filter between my fingers, pushing the burning cherry out of the filter and onto the ground. I quickly ground the cherry out under the toe of my boot and stuck the butt in my pack. I looked to Twilight. "So, are we still going to your house?"

She had been looking at me, like she was trying to figure out a puzzle, ever since I answered Applejack. She shook her head, then answered me. "Yes. It's this way." She started walking off, with the rest of us behind her. I was still wrapping my head around the situation, so I wasn't too concerned with noticing my surroundings. We soon reached her home, and I have to say I was impressed. Carving a home into a living tree was no easy feat, and the sheer size of it impressed me. It had to be about fifty feet across at the base, and around a hundred feet tall. Twilight opened the door and we all walked in.

My first view of the room we had entered froze me in my tracks, before I rushed over to one wall. Books filled every nook and cranny to be seen. As an avid Bibliophile, this was my idea of heaven. I scanned the shelf, eagerly drinking in the titles. There were several interesting looking books, but there was one that grabbed my attention. **Fauna of Equestria** by someone named Golden Autumn. I pulled it off the shelf and flipped it open, eagerly starting to read while flopping down on a nearby beanbag, letting my ruck fall to the floor next to me.

Someone cleared their throat, snapping me back to my surroundings. "Ah think we might lose im, Twilight. Seems to like books about as much as you." AJ said, grinning in my direction. I, being a mature adult, stuck my tongue out at her and went back to reading. A purple glow surrounded the book, pulling it from my hands. I looked at the others in the room, seeing Twilight had the same glow around her horn.

"I was reading that thank you very much." I said, glaring balefully at her. She levitated the book to a nearby table and set it down.

"You can finish it later. Right now we need to discuss what we're going to do with you." She said as she took a seat on a chair. "For right now, I think you should stay here, until you can find a place of your own. You also need to find a job. Are there any skills that you have?" She said, pulling out her notepad and pen again.

I sat back and pondered that question. I did have several skills, however they were of a more, _violent_ , nature, and I didn't wish to divulge that information. However… "I can cook, and I'm a fair hand at fieldwork." I said, noticing Applejack perking her ears at that. "I also play some instruments and sing."

"Oh? Could you give us a demonstration of your playing?" Rarity asked me, all the others asking me to as well. I shook my head.

"I wish I could, but I don't have a guitar or a keyboard with me, so I really.." at this point I was interrupted by the door being practically knocked off its hinges as a woman with pink poufy hair ran in, thrusting a keyboard into my hands before flopping down and starting to eat a bucket of popcorn she pulled from… you know I have no clue where the hell that came from.

"Err, I mean, why not?" I said, eyeing the strange woman. She waved at me after stuffing a huge handful of popcorn into her mouth. I turned the keyboard on then played a few octaves, thinking about what I could play. I saw the pink haired one pull a cell phone out and quickly type in something before putting it in her pocket. I went to ask, then though better of it.

I played some warmup octaves, loosening my fingers up, then I went to start playing before the door suddenly blasted open again, allowing a rainbow haired woman with blue fur entry. I saw Fluttershy on the path behind her approaching the house as well.

I looked at the pink haired one again, and again she waved, before pulling a giant sucker the size of a ping pong paddle from somewhere before shoving the whole thing into her mouth. I stared, blinked, rubbed my eyes and stared again. Yup, giant sucker in the mouth. I looked at the others who were sitting on a nearby couch. The looks I got back all said _Ignore it_ so I did. The rainbow haired woman had sat down nearby on... A cloud?! Where the actual... you know what, fuck it, im chalking it up to this place.

By this time Fluttershy had arrived and had taken a seat on the couch with the girls, Twilight, AJ, and Rarity. "So is this everyone then?" I asked, getting nods in response. I cracked my fingers, then started to play one of my favorites. As the opening notes ended, I started to sing.

 **Making my way downtown, walking fast, faces pass and I'm homebound.**

 **Staring blankly ahead, just making my way, making a way through the crowd.**

 **And I need you, and I miss you, now I wonder?**

 **If I could fall into the sky, do you think time, would pass me by?**

 **Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles if I can just see you tonight.**

 **It's always times like these when I think of you and I wonder if you think of me**

 **Cause everything's so wrong and I don't belong living in your precious memory.**

 **And I need you, and I miss you, now I wonder?**

 **If I could fall into the sky, do you think time, would pass me by?**

 **Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles if I could just see you tonight.**

 **And I, I, don't want to let you know,**

 **I, I, drown in your memory,**

 **I, I, don't want to let this go,**

 **I, I, don't.**

 **Making my way downtown, walking fast, faces pass as I'm homebound.**

 **Staring blankly ahead, just making my way, making a way through the crowd.**

 **And I still need you, and I still miss you, now I wonder?**

 **If I could fall into the sky, do you think time, would pass us by?**

 **Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles if I could just see you, ohhh**

 **If I could fall into the sky, do you think time, would pass me by?**

 **Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles,**

 **If I could just see you, if I could just hold you, tonight.**

As I played the final notes to the song, I looked up to see everyone staring at me. Rarity's eyes were shining, Twilight looked stunned, and the three girls were bouncing in their seats.

"That was amazing Nicolai! Can you play another one?" Scootaloo asked me. I ran my fingers through my hair and grinned.

"Well, if I had a guitar I could…" I barely had the words out before a guitar was shoved into my hands by the pink haired woman. I looked at the acoustic guitar, then at the woman, who was fiddling with her hair, before grinning at me.

"Ok, I have to ask. How the hell are you doing that?"

"Doing what silly? You said you needed a guitar, so I gave you one." She said, cocking her head at me. I face palmed, then turned to Twilight. "Twilight, could you answer the question?" She looked at me and just shook her head.

"Trust me, if I knew I'd tell you, but I'm just as puzzled as you are." She said to me. I rubbed my face, then strummed the guitar to see if it was tuned.

Everything sounded good, so I quickly thought about what song I could play. Most of the songs I knew required a band to back me, but I did know some acoustic covers. I looked over towards the couch and saw Fluttershy looking towards me. When she saw me looking she eeped and looked down at the floor, hiding behind her hair. She looked so beautiful sitting there, with the sunlight from the window behind her like a halo around her head. And with that thought, I knew what song I could play,

 **Your insecure, don't know what for,**

 **Your turning heads when you walk through the door.**

 **Don't need makeup, to cover up**

 **Being the way that you are is enough.**

 **Everyone else in the room can see it,**

 **Everyone else but you.**

 **Baby you light up my world like nobody else,**

 **The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,**

 **But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,**

 **You don't know oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful, oh oh,**

 **That's what makes you beautiful.**

As I played I glanced towards the couch. Fluttershy was still hiding behind her hair, but she was peeking out at me. She flushed crimson when she saw me looking and hid her face again. The girls were sitting there listening with rapt attention, and Twilight, well she was looking between me and Fluttershy, and _smirking_? I just smirked, then winked at Twilight, making her turn scarlet, and continued to sing.

 **So girl come on, you got it wrong,**

 **To prove I'm right I put in a song.**

 **I don't know why, you're being shy**

 **And turn away when I look in your eyes.**

 **Everyone else in the room can see it,**

 **Everyone else but you.**

 **Baby you light up my world like nobody else,**

 **The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,**

 **But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,**

 **You don't know oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful, oh oh,**

 **That's what makes you beautiful.**

 **That's what makes you beautiful.**

 **Baby you light up my world like nobody else,**

 **The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,**

 **But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,**

 **You don't know oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful.**

 **That's what makes you beautiful.**

 **Ohh yeah, that's what makes you beautiful.**

 **That's what makes you beautiful-l.**

 **Baby you light up my world like nobody else,**

 **The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,**

 **But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,**

 **You don't know oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful,**

 **If only you saw what I can see,**

 **You'll understand why I want you so desperately,**

 **Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe**

 **You don't know oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful.**

 **That's what makes you beautiful.**

 **And that's what makes you beautiful.**

As I finished playing, the rainbow haired woman exclaimed, "Wow dude, you sound amazing! Can you play another one?" her eyes seemed to grow larger as she asked.

"Eh, maybe later miss..." She seemed to straighten up, and swell up too.

"The names Rainbow Dash, the fastest, most awesome pegasus in Equestria." She stated, preening in the process. I just looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Oh she's one of those.

"You're the fastest? Really? So if I go to any other city I won't find someone just a hair faster? As for the most awesome Pegasus, are you sure about that?" I said to her. She scoffed at me. "Of course I'm sure. I'm the coolest there is. Everyone knows it's the truth." She stated, buffing her nails on her shirt.

I raised my eyebrow again, then glanced towards the poofy haired woman. As I opened my mouth, I knew I was going to need something for my head. "And you are?" She immediately bounced up and was jumping around me in a circle.

"I'm Pinkie Pie and I'm gonna be your bestest friend! Ooooooh I need to throw you a "Welcome to Ponyville party"! Do you like cupcakes, or do you like cake more? I love cupcakes a lot! You should come to Sugarcube Corner and try our cakes! I make the best cakes and cupcakes ever! Here try one!" She said this all in one breath before shoving a cupcake into my mouth. I stared at her, then chewed. As I chewed she kept up her banter. "You're tall you know that? How did you get so tall? Ooh did you eat all your veggies when you were a colt? Why don't you have hooves? Are you an alien? Ooooh are you a human from the past?"

I choked at her last question. _Human from the past? The fuck?_ I saw Twilight on the couch twitch her eyebrow when Pinkie asked me that as well. "What do you mean 'human from the past' Pinkie?" She asks. Pinkie bounces over and flops onto the couch by Twilight.

"Silly filly, everyone knows that humans lived many many many many years ago." She states with a giggle. Twilights eye twitches, then she gets a thoughtful look on her face.

"SPIKE! I NEED YOU!" She suddenly yells at the ceiling as she grabs a piece of paper and uses her magic to get a quill and ink. I hear a yelp and a thump from upstairs, then the sound of someone coming down a set of stairs. I look over to see someone coming out of a doorway tucked into a corner of the room.

I have to stare at this individual. I'm guessing this is "Spike" and I have to say, wow. He stands just a little taller than the CMC and is purple. Like the same purple as Twilight is. That part that catches my attention first is the scales. His face, arms, and hands are covered in them. It looks like he has snakeskin covering him. He also has what I first thought was a green Mohawk on his head, but when I look closer I see it actually resembles the plates that a dinosaur would have, like a stego or something. He also doesn't have ears, per se, but has two small fin looking things instead.

As he walks in he yawns, revealing a set of sharp teeth. He idly rubs one of his eyes as he leans against a nearby bookcase. I cant help but notice that he's wearing pajama bottoms with what looks like a female version of Indiana Jones on them and a white tshirt. He cracks one eye, revealing an emerald green iris with a slitted pupil.

"What do you need Twilight? I was having an awesome dream where Sweetie Belle was being attacked by zombie ponies and I…." I think his brain kicked in about then and he realized that theres more than just Twilight in the room. Everyone is looking at him with various looks on their faces, though Sweetie Belle is blushing and Rarity is looking between them with a small smile. Spikes face turns red for a few seconds before Twilight speaks.

"Spike, I need to send this letter to Princess Celestia immediately." She states, handing him the letter she had just finished after rolling it up into a scroll. He takes it from her, still a little red in the face, then suddenly opens his mouth and shoots out a green flame, incinerating the letter.

I just stare at him in shock. He was asked to mail a letter, and because he got woken up and a little embarrassed, he burns it. And not only does he burn it, he does it by breathing fire! I guess Twilight could read the shock on my face, because she turns to me. "Spike has the ability to send letters to the princess using his flame, Nicolai." I nod my head, still a little shocked. "Ok, and how does he breathe fire?" I ask. She looks at me blankly, then realizes what Im asking. Before she can answer me Spike speaks up.

"Haven't you ever seen a dragon before dude?" he asks me. I just shake my head mutely. Spike goes to say something else to me, before his cheeks puff out and he belches out smoke. My eyes widen when the smoke coalesces into a scroll. He catches the scroll and tosses it to Twilight.

I watch Twilight catch the letter and open it. Her eyes go back and forth, widening the more she reads. She suddenly looks up at me, then looks at the others. "The Princess wants us to come to Canterlot. She's sending a chariot to collect us in an hour. She also said that we may have to stay overnight." She states, then immediately starts to run around her living room grabbing things. The others watch her for a few seconds, then they get up and start to make for the door.

"We'll be back soon Twilight." AJ calls over her shoulder as she walks out the door with Applebloom. I watch out a nearby window and see Rarity and Sweetie Belle heading towards what looks like a large carousel in the distance. Rainbow Jumps into the air and opens her wings before flying away, while Fluttershy slowly flies towards the edge of town.

I turn around to see Pinkie still sitting on the couch, only now she's holding a large duffelbag with the design of three balloons on it. I blink, then immediately ask. "Where the hell do you keep getting this stuff?!" She just giggles in response. I sit back and rub my face, wondering why I even asked. I see my book sitting on the table still, so I reach over and pick it up. As I start to read, I hear some clanking noise coming from my left, so I look over to see Spike digging around in a cabinet before pulling out a bowl and setting it on a counter. _Hm. Must be the kitchen_.

Spike turns around and sees me looking at him and Pinkie on the couch. "Do you two want anything to eat? I'm gonna make some breakfast for Twilight." He asks as he moves towards what I guess is a fridge.

Pinkie flies into the kitchen and starts to jump around. "Can we have triple chocolate chip pancakes?" she asks while bouncing around the room. Spike rolls his eyes as he pulls out some stuff from the fridge. When he looks at me, I just shrug my shoulders. "Food is food, and I'll eat whatever there is." I say before I bury my nose back in my book. I hear Pinkie Pie in the background crying "Make all the pancakes!" I snort, then start to read again.

I skim over the sections talking about animals I already know about, but one entry catches my eyes. Or more specifically the illustration catches my eye. There's a drawing of a large wolf, only its entirely made out of wood. I bite back a bark of laughter when I see the creature's called a Timberwolf. Apparently they're a magical construct formed from the latent magic found in the Everfree Forest. A memory tickles at the back of my mind of AJ saying I came out of that place. _Hm. Lucky I didn't run into one while I was injured. That probably wouldn't have ended in my favor._

I continue to skim, finding more and more creatures, including several that were thought to be mythological in nature. Manticores, Cockatrice, Hydra, just to name a few. It also names several that I thought were only constellations, like an Ursa Major. Twilight had come back into the room by this point and has been looking at the book over my shoulder. "Enjoying the view Twilight?" I ask, feeling her jump. I don't think she knew I was aware she was behind me.

"How did you know I was here?" she asks. I chuckle at her, hearing her huff. "Ive learned that being aware of my surroundings is beneficial to my health." I reply to her. I can feel the odd look she's sending at my back, but im not going to explain what I mean.

"Foods done!" Spike calls from the kitchen. I close the book and set it down on the table before getting up and walking into the kitchen. It's a cozy room, painted in cool shades like blue and purple, lending a sense of peace to the air. The table in the center of the room is small, only having four chairs, but its large enough to support what looks like a feast. Theres giant pillars of pancakes, mounds of hashbrowns, a giant jug of syrup, a giant bowl of eggs, stacks of toast, a large platter what looks like fried flowers, and a large pitcher of grape juice.

Pinkie and Spike are already sitting down, and have started to put food on their plates. Twilight walks in behind me and heads towards the table. I reach forward and pull the chair she was heading for out, making her raise a brow, as well as color slightly, before she sits down next to Spike. I take the free seat next to Pinky and dish some eggs and hashbrowns onto my plate, along with a stack of the pancakes.

"So Spike? Expecting an army for breakfast?" I ask while taking a bite of pancake. I can't help the moan that slips through my lips. I mean damn this is amazing. I take a larger bite, and chew, savoring the flavor. "Sweet mother of all, its like a culinary orgasm!" I exclaim. Twilight and Spike are red faced, while Pinkie is bouncing in her seat.

"I know right? Aren't the pancakes I make just the best most scrumptious thing you've ever had?" she cheers while bouncing. I roll my eyes, but I have to agree. I have never tasted food this good. I take a bite of eggs and have to bite back another moan. How the hell did she and Spike make everything taste so good? When I compare the taste of the food Im used to with this food? Like eating ashes.

Spike has managed to get his blushing under control, and answers my previous question. "I made enough for the others too. I know that Rainbow Dash will eat at least, and Rarity as well." Twilight nods her head as she eats some of the flowers. I have to ask. "Twilight? Are those really flowers?"

She looks at the food, then I see understanding dawn in her eyes. "Your kind don't eat flowers, do they?" I shake my head at her. She nods in understanding. "Well, our species consume flowers and dried grasses. These in particular are fried dandelions" I quirk my eyebrow. _Flowers and hay. What a diet._ I shake my head and reach for the platter. When in Rome, ya know. I dish some onto my plate and try a bite. Its not that bad, kinda reminds me of fried greens in a way. I swallow, then look at Twilight. "They taste fine to me. Kinda remind me of something we ate back where I'm from. However, I think I'll pass on any hay in the future."

Twilight giggles at that, then we resume our meal. After a few more minutes, we're joined by AJ and Rarity. AJ has a bag thrown on her shoulder with a pattern of three apples on it, whereas Rarity has a suitcase with three sky blue diamonds on it. They set their bags down by the door, then walk into the kitchen to join us. I grab my plate and stand, offering my seat to Rarity, who colors, but takes the seat, murmuring a thank you. I lean against the counter behind Spike and turn my head to look at Applejack, who has filled a plate and joined me.

"So ah heard ya say you've done some fieldwork? What sort of work we talkin bout here?' she asks me while taking a bite of hashbrown. I swallow the bite I have in my mouth, then respond. "Well Ive worked as a fieldhand, a harvester, and I spent some time working in a large orchard a few years ago." AJ nods her head while chewing, then swallows and look sideways at me. "Well ah need an extra hand around mah farm. Maybe ah could interest you in a job? She asks. I mull it over and give a short nod.

Twilight and Rarity are in the middle of discussing what the Princess may want with us, while Pinkie and Spike are wolfing down their food. As Spike finishes his plate and gets up to put it in the sink, the front door flies open to admit Rainbow Dash, with Fluttershy trailing behind her. Dash drops a satchel with a cloud and rainbow colored lightning bolt design on it before moving towards the table to join us, while Fluttershy placed a small suitcase with a design of three butterflies on it.

As she walks into the kitchen I hook the chair that Spike just left with my foot and pull it out for her, only to have Dash come around the table from behind Rarity and flop down in it. I just stare at the back of her head before snapping.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" I growl out. Dash turns around and looks at me. "I was sitting down. What's it to you?" I grab the back of the chair and spin it around so she's facing me. "I pulled the chair out for Fluttershy, not for you. Move your ass now." I say to her. She looks at me in shock, then suddenly she's in my face.

"You have a problem with me? Why don't we go outside and " she growls at me, poking my in the chest. I looked down at her finger, then back up at her. She recoiled slightly when she sees my eyes.

"Don't poke me. Ever. The next time you do, I will break every bone in your hand. Am I clear?" comes from me in a voice like I'm discussing the weather. Dash's eyes flash at me, then she smirks. "Like something like you could ever take me." My eyes narrow, then I jerk my head towards the door. "Care to prove that?"

Dash snorts at me, then heads for the door with me behind her. I can hear Twilight and the others behind us, trying to reason with us, except for Applejack. Sounds like she's trying to keep the others from getting involved. "Jest let em beat each other into the dirt. It's a dominance thing with em."

Dash is already outside waiting for me, bouncing on her hooves and making quick jabs with her fists. I scoff at her, slipping my jacket off before tilting my head side to side, cracking my neck. I raise my hand, then gesture for her to come at me.

Dash lunges forward, bringing her fist towards my face. As her fist whistles towards my face, I tilt my head sideways, letting it bypass me. Dash swings her other fist for my ribs, but I merely deflect it, before flicking her in the forehead. She shakes her head, then growls as she plants her hooves and, with a quick flap of her wings, rockets fist first for me. I catch her arm and twist around, using her momentum to launch her into the sky. She sails up, before flipping around and rocketing back towards me.

As she fills my vision, I plant my right foot, then twist aside as she reaches me and grab her arm and shoulder before forcing her face first into the ground. I back away from her, letting her rise to her hooves again. As Dash stands, she wipes an arm across her face, wiping blood from her nose away. "Okay, now I'm bucking mad!" She yells before lunging for me again.

I block the flurry of punches she sends my way, before being hit in the stomach with a kick. As I double over, Dash twists around, before kicking a hoof into my ribs, launching me backwards to roll along the ground. As I roll onto my hands and knees, I start to laugh. Dash, who was running for me, comes to a halt and stares at me. "What's so funny?" I laugh again, before rising to my feet. I crack my knuckles, then look her dead in the eyes. "That was your last hit." I state before rushing forward.

Dash barely has time to throw her arms up to block before Im on her. I deliver blow after blow to her defense, pushing her backwards. To her credit, she manages to keep blocking my blows, but I can see shes starting to get worried. I throw a left to her face, only to have her catch it before she tries to headbutt me. I pull my head back, before bringing my knee up into her stomach, causing her to double over as I drive all the air out of her lungs. As she tries to rise, I sweep her legs out from under her, causing her to fall to the ground. As she goes to get up, I plant my fist into her back and force her down again.

"Will you stop?" I say as Dash tries to stand up again, before I knock her back down. She does this three more times, before staring balefully at me from the ground. I just stare back, before offering her my hand. Surprise flickers across her face, before she huffs and takes my hand. I pull her upright, then block the fist she tries to plant in my face, twisting her arm behind her. "Do you really want me to plant you in the ground face first again?" I ask her. Dash struggles some more, then just goes limp.

"Fine, I give up." She grinds out. I let go of her arm, then back away. Dash rubs her wrist, then stalks towards the door where the others are watching us. I see AJ passing some gold coins to Pinkie, who grins in my direction. I walk up alongside Dash, who shoots me a glare.

"Calm down. At least you landed a hit on me. Noone's done that in a while." I say to her. Dash looks at me, then seems to cheer up a little bit. Everyone goes back to their meal, then we wait for the chariot to arrive.

*Authors Note: Ok guys I am so sorry that it's taken me this long to get this chapter out. I've been busy dealing with life, writers block, and other such blockades. I started this one, then my computer broke, then when I got it back, I lost my muse, before finally managing to get an idea of what I wanted to happen this chapter, so I sat down the other night and wrote out the rest. I'm not necessarily happy with the flow, due to cramming so much into the chapter, but I can always rewrite it in the future if I come to hate it/ I reach a point where Im satisfied enough to end the story. I really wanted to get Ponyville dealt with, so Canterlot can start next chapter.

Now, as stated in the summary, this story wont really follow canon, in that I want to control the flow of events, like when the wedding and other stuff happens. Also, to anyone who's trying to figure out the pairing for this story, it may seem like I've made a choice, but I haven't yet. I am putting my personality into this story, and as I am a flirty person, well there ya go. If you have any suggestions for pairings, please let me hear them. Also, the fight with Dash also fits my personality. I hate it when people prod me like that, and I have almost gotten into fights over it, with my friends having to step in to stop them. I mention this to head off any comments about my character's personality flip flopping.

Also, I'm considering finding another Beta due to my current one being a hair anti MLP. I asked him cause I know him, not to mention I have ready access to him, and I knew he would tell me if any errors appeared, but that's all he'll do. I can't get any suggestions out of him, and I have to practically beg him to even look over the chapters and edits I write. Just mentioning it in case I do decide to, so you my readers have a heads up in case you want to volunteer. Anywhos, I'm starting on the next chapter as we speak, and I hope to have it up soon. Again, I have no internet myself, so it may take some time.

Anywhos, check out the Boyce Avenue covers of the two songs used to get an idea of what I was going for.

As always, like, review, and fave if you like it. Reviews are always welcome. Thanks friends.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

After everyone had finished breakfast, we moved into the living room to wait for the chariot to arrive so we can leave. I had picked up my book and flipped through it idly, before deciding to see what other books Twilight had. I start looking over the shelf, idly listening to the conversation in the background between Twilight and Rainbow Dash. Apparently Twilight found a "magic suppression" spell that lasts as long as the caster maintains it, and Dash doesn't believe it would affect a Pegasus.

"Look Rainbow, I'll prove it to you." Twilight says. I turn around and see her horn light up before there's a flash. I rub my eyes, then look at Dash, who is leaping into the air and flapping her wings, but she can't stay up. I chuckle, then turn back to the bookshelf to see…. What the fuck!?

Every book I look at has a title I can't read. There's symbols where the letters should be, so the titles haven't disappeared, I just can't read them. I turn around and look at the girls. Twilights horn is still lit up, and Dash is still trying to get airborne. AJ looks my way, her smile morphing to concern when she sees my face. "Aiq cleir temi?"

"I don't understand what you just said." I say. Everyone in the room immediately looks at me, Twilight is looking closely at me. "Heitch meir cleir teith? Suhs lenidf daonils cleir."

"Oh very funny, pretend to not speak my language. You were just speaking it." I say to them. They look between each other, then back at me. When I see their faces though, my blood runs cold. Each one of them is looking at me with growing concern clearly written on their faces. "You guys aren't faking are you?" I say to them. The level of concern goes up a notch.

I'm starting to panic just a little. I can't understand anything that they're saying. I grab a book and point at it. Twilight looks at the book, then at me. I open it and act like im reading, then look at her and point at it while shaking my head vigorously. I then point at her, then my ear, then shake my head again. Twilight's horn quits shining, then she walks over to me.

"Calm down. What were you trying to say?" She says. I give a sigh of relief. She's still looking at me with some concern. I take a deep breath to calm myself down, then sit down on the beanbag from before looking at her.

"I couldn't understand you. I couldn't even read the titles on your books." I say to her. She looks at me in surprise, then hands me the book I had grabbed. I look at the title, now able to read **101 Nightmare Night Stories** on the spine. "Can you read it now Nicolai?" She asks me. I nod my head in response. She rubs her chin while looking at me and then the book.

"I want to try something. I'm going to cast the spell again. If you can't read the title, hold up two fingers. If you can, hold up one. Rarity, I need you to levitate this book." She says, placing a book on the table next to the couch. Rarity nods and picks up the book with her magic, making it float in the air. Twilight asks both of us if we're ready, before her horn lights up again, causing the same bright flash. Immediately the book Rarity is levitating fall onto the table, and when I look back at the book, all I can see is **101 Nightmare Night Stories** instead of the title. I hold up two fingers and Twilights horn immediately stops glowing. She takes the book from me and the table and place them back on the shelf, looking pensive. AJ speaks up from across the room.

"What's goin on Sugarcube?" Twilight looks at me, then back at the others. She then sits down and rubs her face. When she looks up, we can all see the confusion in her eyes. "The spell works like it should. It's disrupting all magic in the room. Whenever the spell is active though, Nicolai can't read anything written in or understand Equestrian. What we heard when he was speaking to us was his native tongue I'm guessing." She lets that hang in the air.

AJ looks at me, then at Twilight. "Now hold on jest a sec, ya mean ta say Nicolai has magic?" I look at Twilight in shock. _Magic? No, that can't be what she…_ "Yes. That's exactly what I'm saying." Twilight says, still looking confused. I just look at her, innumerable thoughts running though my head. Ok, so the only reason I can read anything or even understand anyone is because I'm doing it magically? But, how? I don't have any magic. There has to be another reason for what happened.

As I open my mouth to suggest this, I hear the clatter of wheels outside the door. I look out the window to see a wooden chariot being pulled by four Pegasi. Twilight and company also heard it apparently, because I can see them by the door picking up their bags. I rise as well, rubbing my face, still trying to wrap my mind around the situation. There has to be another solution, doesn't there?

I look over towards Twilight, who is looking at me with concern. She apparently can see how much im puzzling this out, as she smiles at me. "Don't worry about it Nicolai, I'm sure the Princess can tell us what's going on." I suck in a breath, before exhaling and nodding my head. I sling my rucksack over my shoulder and head outside with the girls, hearing Twilight calling to Spike to watch the Library while she's gone, and sit down inside the chariot next to AJ. Twilight sits down and taps on the wall to signal the four pulling us, and I close my eyes as I feel the chariot jolt as we start on our way.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I come back to consciousness to the sensation of someone poking my face. When I open my eyes, im immediately confronted with a pair of bright blue eyes. Before I have time to properly process this, I have the owner of those eyes pinned on the floor of the chariot by their neck, with my fist an inch from their face. Pinkie stares up at me, fear written on her face, her heart pounding in fear. I glare at her for another second, then realize what I'm doing, immediately launching myself backwards away from her. Pinkie gets up shakily, but her hair's no longer poofed up. Instead it now hangs limp and straight, as does her tail. She shoots me another look of utter fear, and as I move forward to apologize, she jumps out of the chariot.

I step out to see the girls gathered around a shaking Pinkie over by a doorway in the nearby wall. Rainbow is glaring in my direction, while Twilight is looking between us, her face thoughtful. Fluttershy and Rarity are trying to comfort her, and Applejack is looking at me, also looking thoughtful. She then walks towards me, before stopping in front of me. I lower my head, staring at the ground. "How long did you serve?"

I jerk my head up. _How did she?_ I open my mouth, then close it. "How did you figure it out?" I ask her. She looks off into the distance, then takes her Stetson off and looks at it. "Mah father served during the last war we had with the griffons going on forty years ago. Granny told me that before the war he was so carefree, but after he got back, he'd have nightmares, and he'd scream in his sleep almost every night. Mah granpa would go to wake him up, and pa would attack him. He'd be confused when he first woke up, grannie said, and he didn't mean any harm, but he thought he was being attacked. He got better the more the years went on, but every now and again, he'd have another nightmare."

She looks down at the ground then back at me. I look her in the eyes and see the concern there. "Pinkie saw that ya were asleep, and told us she was gonna wake ya. When she told us what you did when she woke ya, ah put the pieces together with how ya handled Dash earlier. Only someone with some training coulda blocked her punches." She places a hand on my shoulder and squeezes. "Look, ya need someone ta talk to, come tah meh. Ah'll give ya a shoulder tah cry on." I jerk my head up to see a small smirk play across her face.

I push her hand off of my shoulder. "Ah get off me ya ass." I smile as I say it though. She smiles back, then we walk over towards the others. Dash goes to stop me, but I just spin her away. Pinkie starts to recoil from me, but I just reach out and grip her shoulder. "Pinkie stop." She stops trying to move away from me, but I can still see the fright on her face. "Pinkie I'm sorry. I didn't mean to attack you like that. I have a lot of ghosts in my past, ghosts which won't leave me alone. You startled me, and I responded to that. Will you forgive me?"

Pinkie looks at me, then her hair and tail poof back up and she jumps at me, throwing her arms around my neck. "Of course I forgive you silly billy. You were just surprised." I stand there awkwardly, letting her hug me. After a few more seconds I gently peel her arms off of me, then step away. The rest of them are looking at me with small smiles on their faces, but Dash still looks pissed. She storms up to me and gets in my face, pushing me backwards.

"What the buck is your deal? All Pinkie was trying to do was wake you up and you attack her? Give me one good reason I shouldn't buck you into next season!" As she yells, I feel anger starting to well up inside of me. As she goes to open her mouth to yell at me again, I drive my shoulder into her chest, knocking her back against the wall. Before she can recover, I have her pinned.

"Let me get one thing straight for you. You don't know me, or what I've done. I have seen and done things that would give you nightmares for the rest of your life. I have been in the worst situations that my race can come up with, and some you wouldn't even think possible. I have been to the very depths of Hell, and I have come back unharmed. I have seen death, and spit in its face. I have stared down evil incarnate, and laughed. Do not presume to judge me, you who know nothing of what I have survived." I roar at her. I then drop her and stalk for the door.

-.-Twilights's POV-.-

I stand in shock as I watch Nicolai slam Dash against the wall. As I listen to him yelling at Dash, I feel horror and sadness fill me. His words, his very energy, speak of actions unbelievable. It feels as if the very air around us is beginning to freeze and constrict around us. As I step forward to try to separate them, Applejack sticks her arm in my way. I can see she's restraining the others as well, and it confuses me. Why would she stop us from helping Dash?

"Don't get involved in this girls. Dash started this, and he's finishing it. Jest let em be." AJ says. Even though she says to stay out of it, I can feel she's tensed up, ready to step in if needed. Fortunately, Nicolai releases Dash and stalks towards the nearby door into the castle. Dash walks over to us, rubbing her chest where his arm pressed her into the wall.

"What the hay is his deal? He attacks Pinkie, then me. Maybe we shouldn't have brought him here, if he's gonna be violent like… " Dash is cut off by Applejack slapping her in the face. Dash looks at her in shock, bringing her hand to her cheek. AJ glares at her before turning away." Ya have no idea what yer talking bout Dash. Maybe you should have stayed behind, stead of judging him. Ya have no idea what that there stallion has been through."

I watch Applejack walk away, jaw set. It looks like slapping Dash caused her some internal conflict, but I need to know what caused it before I can have a better understanding of her motivation. I hesitantly follow after her with the others behind me, passing from the open air of the landing area to the cool presence of the castle interior, where I see AJ ahead of us, walking next to Nicolai. The interactions of this morning and our arrival weigh on my mind as I replay them.

What could cause somepony who was acting so nicely this morning to morph into this, this presence of darkness? He said he had spit in deaths face, and laughed at evil incarnate, but how do you do that? He spoke of descending to the depths of a place he called Hell, and returning unharmed. What is this "Hell" that he spoke about, and why is returning unscathed an accomplishment. The more I thought on this, the more questions I have about this stallions past. As I walk into the Throne Room, another question immediately jumps to mind, and that is why the princesses look shocked.

-.-Nicolai's POV-.-

I storm into the castle, feeling angry at myself. Deep down, I understand that Dash was right to confront me, and I know I shouldn't have gone after like that for doing so, but it pisses me the fuck off whenever someone jumps down my throat for something that I really can't control. True, she doesn't know what my life has been like, so she wouldn't understand, but still. I apologized and Pinkie let it go, so she should have too. AJ falls into step next to me and, when I look over to her, I see understanding on her face. She did say her father did the same thing that I do, so she at least has some understanding of what I'm dealing with.

I let her guide me, as she seems to know where we're going. She leads towards a set of massive golden double doors, which open as we approach them, admitting us to a large room. Huge windows along each wall admit sunlight, lighting the room in a wash of golden light. The floor seems to be made of marble, with a long crimson carpet stretching from the door towards a raised dais at the other end of the room. A large throne sits atop this dais, upon which sits a woman, er mare, with long shimmery hair like an early sunrise on a frosty morning, that waves in a nonexistent breeze.

A golden crown with what looks like a large ruby mounted in the center sits atop her head, while a golden necklace bearing a large gem adorns her neck. What catches my eye is the horn that sits at her hairline. Where Twilight and Rarity have horns that could be measured at around six inches, this woman's looks to be over a foot long. Large magenta eyes look towards me as I walk in, and I see them widen as she spots me.

Next to her is another woman with dark blue colored fur and a long dark horn. Her hair is also waving in a non-existant breeze, however hers looks like the night sky, complete with stars. She also wears jewelry and a crown, only hers looks like it's made of some black metal, and her necklace has a white quarter moon on it. She was reclining on another throne when I walked in, but she sat up and is now staring at me as well.

Twilight and the others come into the room and join us, and Twilight is glancing back and forth between me and the dais, some sort of question on her mind. The first mare That I saw when I entered the room stands and approaches me, walking around me before looking me in the face, eyes darting around, before she looks to the other and nods. The other mare walks towards us and stops in front of me.

"Nicolai Romanov, the Reaper of the Infidels. It really is you." The dark one says. I recoil and my hand flashes to my side, looking for a weapon that isn't there. I see the dark mare reach out for me and I blank.

-.-Twilight's POV-.-

I'm looking between the princesses and Nicolai, trying to figure out why they look so shocked. Celestia comes over to us and looks at him, before Luna joins her. Hearing her call him the "Reaper of the Infidels" whatever that is, surprises me. However, his reaction shocks us. It looks like he's trying to find something on his waist, but when Luna reaches for him, he goes insane.

Before we have time to react, his hand flashes out, catching Luna below her horn, forcing her back and disorienting her. He drops and spins around, swinging a leg into Luna's, causing her to fall. As she falls to the floor Nicolai jumps on top of her, pulling his hand back and forming a fist. Before he manages to swing his hand is engulfed in a golden glow. I can see the muscles in his arm straining as he fights against the magic holding his hand aloft. Princess Celestia is standing to the side, her horn lit as she fights him.

Just as I think he's been restrained, his hand moves, just barely noticeably, towards Luna. I look at the princess and see shock written across her face, then determination as she increases the amount of magic she's using. Luna has risen her head and I see her charging a magic attack, before unleashing a magical blast at Nicolai's chest, launching him backwards into the wall.

Nicolai bounces off the wall, then rolls upright as he lands, before launching himself towards Luna again. As he reaches her, she tries to swing her fist into his face, only for him to grab her arm and **throw** her towards a wall. He turns and grins, baring his teeth, towards Celestia.

"You really shouldn't interfere." He says, before suddenly flying at her. I look to my friends. Applejack has Dash restrained, while Rarity and Pinky are staring in shock at whats happening in front of them. Fluttershy is cowering behind me, shaking with fear.

Celestia and Nicolai have started to exchange blows, bobbing and twisting around each other. Nicolai is pouring blows into Celestia, while she is blocking and returning as many hits as she can. I see one fist connect, forcing Nicolai back. As Celestia launches another punch, Nicolai starts to deflect the blows, using the back of his hands to force Celestia's punches away from him. In that moment I understand what he's doing. He knows that he can't beat her with sheer strength, so he's trying to keep her from hitting him.

What happens next almost happens too fast to see. Nicolai twists sideways, gripping Celestia's wrist, before twisting and dropping to his knee, throwing her over his shoulder. As she smashes into the floor he launches himself landing on top of her, ready to slam his fist into her face. Before he has a chance to do so, a beam of dark blue energy catches him in the back, blasting him face first into another wall.

As he lands and slumps to the floor, Celestia rises and starts to charge another attack, but before she can use it, Applejack places herself in front of Nicolai, shielding him with her body.

"Step aside Applejack. That being is too dangerous to allow to be free." Princess Celestia says to Applejack.

"Well as ah see it, he was defending himself. What'd y'all expect him to do? Something about that there name y'all called him scared him." Applejack says, refusing to move one inch. Celestia stares back, then slumps slightly.

"Dearest Applejack, that being behind you is a monster who has done terrible things." She says. She walks forward, laying a hand on AJ's shoulder. "The crimes he has committed are too numerous, and too horrible to adequately describe."

"The only monster was the one who made me what I am." We all look in shock as Nicolai stands. He's battered, bleeding, yet he can still stand. "So Pinkie was right? This is the future?"

A/N: Ok wow. Been a really long time since I posted. Many apologies. As always, life wanted to interfere with me. Trying to hunt down a job, managing to keep a roof over my head, etc. Just been a long few months. Anywhos, heres the next chapter.

Now, heres the thing. My muse for this story is all over the place. I can start writing and halfway through the first sentence lose interest, or I can just be looking it over and suddenly write down four pages. The scene with Luna and Celestia was supposed to go another direction, I even had half a paragraph written up, but when I started writing I used another scene I had started and abandoned. I had two different directions I wanted it to go, and my muse used the fight option. Such is writing.

I cannot tell you when the next chapter will come out because I just don't know. Could be next week, could be next year. That's a far stretch, I fully intend to get at least three more chapters this year, but you get the idea. Anyways, like, review and fave this story if you like it. And thanks to the readers who have already favorited this story.


	5. Chapter 5

I shake my head, trying to clear the ringing in my ears. The others are staring at me, Twilight with a look of disbelief on her face, the others with various looks of fear or wariness on theirs. I look towards the princess, shaking my head at her. "Let's punish the beast for its masters bidding, after all if it's ordered to bite it must be a monster." I look at the others, then turn.

"I was given the title "Reaper of the Infidels" when I was only eighteen years old. I was part of a group of soldiers led by General Adelos Torrent, a man we thought we could trust. He had recruited me when I was only sixteen, after I had run away from home. Some forged papers later, I was officially enlisted in his personal squad, along with four others."

I look towards the others, seeing looks of confusion. However on Celestia and Luna's face I still see some distrust. Twilight is still looking between me and the princesses, while Applejack has walked up next to me and placed her hand on my shoulder.

"Y'all don't need to tell us if its painful fer ya." She says to me. I smile at her, then shake my head.

"It's fine. I need to tell this story." I say, then walk towards a window and look out at the city beneath us.

"Tell me your highness, what would you do if you discovered that one of your subjects was getting ready to release a deadly poison that would kill millions in ten minutes time, but you didn't know their identity. What you do know is that they are currently in a camp with nine others, and the only way to stop them was to destroy that camp, killing everyone in the process, would you do it?" I ask, then turn to face her. The others all have looks of horror on their face at the question, but on Celestia's face I see first surprise, then contemplation, then resolve.

"If it meant saving the lives of my little ponies, I would." She stated, drawing looks of shock from the girls, and a startled look from her sister. Twilight is looking at Celestia in shock and terror. I simply nod, then turn back to the window.

"The first mission I did for my esteemed leader was a simple one. There was a terrorist in a small village, populated by roughly thirty people. He told us that the terrorist had a cache of weapons and explosives that he meant to use to kill soldiers. Our mission was simple, infiltrate the village, secure the cache, and terminate the threat."

I turned and leaned against the window. "We entered the town with no problems, and quickly made our way through the village. We searched, but were unable to locate any weapons. When we reported that in, we were told that the terrorist was mobilizing, and we had to go to our backup plan."

Twilight asked the question. "What was the backup plan?"

I looked at each of the girls, then at Applejack, who just looked at me, before she looks at Twilight.

"Y'all were ordered to destroy the town weren't ya?" she says sadly, before looking back at me. I merely nod, then look back at Celestia.

"We were ordered to set explosives all around the village, then retreat and detonate them. If anyone tried to flee…" I left the rest of the sentence unsaid. The girls all look at me, shocked at what I am saying to them.

"We had just finished setting the last explosive, when a child, a clueless child, walked around the hut and saw us. This kid had no clue what was going on or who we were, he was just walking by. It didn't matter though. We had our orders. No one was allowed to interfere with the mission. Before that kid had time to say a word, he was already dead, a knife protruding from his throat."

A gasp from Fluttershy and Pinky draws my attention. Both are staring at me in fear, trembling in terror at the mental image I've painted for them. I look at them sadly, then turn to look out the window again. Applejack walks up next to me and places her hand on my shoulder.

"Ya don't need to tell us anymore if'n ya don't want to, Nicolai." She says to me. I merely chuckle and shake my head, then continue.

"Long story short, we were responsible for the deaths of over thirty people that day, mostly women and children, but we didn't know that. All we were told was that we had stopped a terrorist from killing others. We did several missions like that, always being told that we were "doing our country proud, and you should be proud to serve." We believed it, and we were proud. But everything came to a screeching halt shortly before my eighteenth birthday."

I turn to face the girls again, letting them see my face again. Years of guilt at what I had done, long hidden, are now on display for them to see. "We were lied to. For almost two years, we had been told lies about what we were doing. We weren't a secret military unit, sent to weed out terrorists, we were hired guns. Our first mission? Some oil tycoon wanted the village gone so he could build oil derricks. The village elders refused to move, so he paid the general to have us dispose of the inconvenience. And that wasn't the worst. Anyone with the money could make a problem disappear, and we never knew. We killed men, women, and children, all on the orders of this madman."

I look towards Celestia. "I'm called "Reaper of the Infidels" because I was a ruthless murderer, whose strings were being pulled by a sadistic, murderous psychopath." I turn towards a wall and lash out, driving my fist into it.

"How did you find out?" I hear. Twilight is looking at me, while the others huddle around her.

"I was drug from my bed in the early morning, a week before my eighteenth birthday, by two marines. They had the entire squad in a line outside the tent. We were forced to kneel in the dirt, hands behind our head, while these men ransacked our gear. I saw them drag our general from his tent and throw him in the dirt. He threatened their jobs and all they did was laugh."

"We were all blindfolded and taken away, to our court marshaling I found out later. That was then we found out what was going on. All of our crimes were laid out before us, murder, treason, terrorism, just to name a few, and every one of them a death sentence. I didn't think we would make it out of the room alive, but for once luck was on our side. While they were searching, they found the Generals papers, and they laid everything out, including our lack of knowledge of what we were doing. He was sentenced to death by firing squad, and we were sent for psychological evaluation."

"I was sent home, with a few others returning as well. However, that nickname came home with me too. Some two bit reporter got ahold of what happened, and that was it. The story was everywhere, and for me, that meant no one would hire me. Who would want a mass murderer working for them? I'd manage to get a job, but give it a week or two, and I'd be "laid off due to cutbacks". What a load of shit. I finally managed to nail down a prison job, where the Warden was familiar with the case. Hell, he was the marine who dragged me from the tent years before. He gave me a job, and my life was good."

I look towards Celestia and Luna. "I am forever cursed to be known as a murderer, just because I foolishly believed that a man I trusted wouldn't do wrong by me. He ruined the lives of five people, forever branded as monsters, not even accounting for the hundreds who died at his order."

I turn and face everyone, then ask the question that has been on my mind since I was recognized. "Now that I've told you my story, How about you tell me yours?"

A/N: I know, this chapter is really short, especially considering how much time has passed, but right now it's what I have. I'm gonna work more on it, try to add some. Just felt like I owed my readers something after so long. Also, I apologize for not answering any reviews that are left. I rarely have time to sit down anymore, but hopefully in the future I can respond to them.

Anyways, like, review and fave this story if you like it. And thanks to the readers who have already favorited this story.


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